Looking for Alaska

Over the past year or so, I have experienced a great deal of grief because of my emotional attachment to fictional characters. Most of the blame for my grief can be laid at the feet of two men. The first (and worst) offender is one Steven Moffat. (I’m sure my fellow Whovians and Sherlockians can sympathize.) The second man to bring on copious feels is author John Green. I read The Fault in Our Stars in July of last year, and I was an emotional wreck for days because of that book. Well, earlier today, I finished reading Green’s Looking for Alaska. This Printz medal winner was released way back in 2005, but, for whatever reason, I didn’t get around to reading it until this week. The simple fact that Looking for Alaska is a John Green book should have let me know that I would need tissues by my side while reading, but I was woefully unprepared for how overwrought I would become because of this book. I read the latter part of the book without wearing my glasses because the tear residue was too much to see through. Yes, it’s that good.

When Miles Halter–or Pudge, as he would come to be called–began attending Culver Creek, a boarding school in Alabama, he didn’t really know what to expect, but he was hoping that his life would become something more than what he left back in Florida. Almost immediately, he gets more than he bargained for thanks to a couple of new friends that will change his life forever. The first is his roommate, the Colonel, who is some kind of math genius with a fondness for video games, cigarettes, and booze. The other friend is a girl named Alaska. This girl is quite probably the most beautiful creature Pudge has ever seen…and the most volatile. Despite the roller coaster that comes with knowing Alaska, Pudge is drawn to her and the excitement and mystery that seem to be a part of Alaska’s very being.

The first part of Pudge’s year at Culver Creek is one filled with friends, pranks, laughs, and his first experiences with smoking, drinking, sex, and breaking school rules. The second part of his year takes a turn, however, when something terrible happens that shakes the foundation of his entire world. (If the title didn’t clue you in, this horrible event revolves around Alaska.) As Pudge, the Colonel, and a couple of other friends look for answers, they all begin to question why things happen the way they do and if there’s anything that could have been done to stop tragedy from striking their lives. Will they find the answers they seek, or will they forever be looking for Alaska?

I’ll be the first to admit that the recap above…well, it kind of sucks, and it doesn’t come remotely close to conveying just how amazeballs this book is. It contains so much awesomeness that, quite frankly, it’s probably impossible for me to write a decent blog post about it. Looking for Alaska forces readers to examine some pretty deep existential questions. It alludes to great works of literature and gives us information on famous last words. It teaches us about relationships and how much they mean to us. And it shows us that some emotional damage may be too much to overcome…or it may just make us stronger for having gone through it. I cannot say enough good things about this book, and, despite the grief I’m experiencing right now, Looking for Alaska made me love John Green even more.

One word of caution.  Looking for Alaska is not a book that I would recommend to readers younger than about sixteen. It contains quite a bit of cursing, and the characters are not shy about enjoying smoking, drinking, sex, and subverting authority. (I’ve taught middle school, so I’m not naive enough to believe that younger readers don’t have experience with this stuff, but I do think librarians, bloggers, teachers, and others should be careful when recommending this book to readers who may not be mature enough to handle it.)

In closing, read Looking for Alaska if you haven’t already. It’s an exquisite book that will stay with me for a long while.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone

I don’t even know where to begin when it comes to my latest read, Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone.  This book was on my to-read pile for quite a while, and I finally began reading it exactly two weeks ago.  Well, as it so often does, life got in the way (work, sickness, family stuff, bought a new phone, librarian conference, etc.), and I wasn’t able to finish the book until this morning.  Anyway, I’m so glad I finally picked up Daughter of Smoke and Bone (at the suggestion of several fellow bloggers and librarians).  It was well worth every spare minute I spent devouring the world of Karou and Akiva.  Yes, it took me longer to finish this book than is normal, but, in a way, that’s good.  I was able to fully digest the story, appreciate the depth of the characters, analyze the intricacies of the plot, and think about what might be happening in the future.  (I was nearly always wrong, so kudos to Laini Taylor for keeping me guessing.)

Karou is not exactly a normal girl. Her hair is naturally blue, she is an artist in Prague, she speaks many languages–both human and not-so-human–she runs mysterious errands for her “family,” and she was raised by someone–or something–named Brimstone. No one takes her seriously when she talks about Brimstone and the other “monsters” in her world, and that’s okay with Karou. In certain circumstances, the less people know or believe, the better. But even Karou doesn’t know everything about herself. Brimstone won’t tell her about her parents, why she collects teeth from nefarious types all over the world, how the portals to his shop work, or what the other door in the shop leads to. Karou’s life is full of secrets, but when black handprints begin appearing on the portal doors to Brimstone’s lair, those secrets begin to reveal themselves…

Karou isn’t sure what’s going on, but she knows that danger is all around her…and when she’s attacked by someone who can only be described as an angel, she’s convinced that her family is threatened.  Oh, how right she is.  But why?  What does this angel have against the beings that have loved and cared for her forever?  And why is she so drawn to someone seemingly determined to destroy her entire world?

Akiva was bred to be a warrior, to battle the vile chimaera that have plagued his kind for centuries.  But his war against the hideous creatures goes even deeper.  He’s determined to bring an end to this war by any means necessary…until he encounters Karou.  Who is this blue-haired girl with the power of the chimaera and the face of an angel?  At first, Akiva is unsure about Karou’s connection to the chimaera, but he soon discovers that her connection to them–and him–goes far deeper than either of them thought possible.

Karou and Akiva seem to be inextricably linked, and, as they grow ever closer, the past, the present, and the future conspire to drive them further apart.  How can their fragile relationship hope to survive in a brutal war that has been tearing worlds apart for centuries?  And when long-held secrets are finally revealed, will their connection be severed forever…or will it unite them against the forces that seek to kill any hope for peace?  Explore the possibilities when you read Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor.

I shouldn’t even have to say this, but I will anyway (because it’s my blog, and I can do what I want to).  I adored this book.  It is unlike anything I’ve read in recent memory.  All at once, Daughter of Smoke and Bone is a fantasy, a tale of forbidden love, and a story of an epic, otherworldly war that rivals the myths of ancient civilizations the world over.  Every setting in the book was richly described, so much so that I now feel that I’ve actually been to Prague or Marrakesh.  The characters were flawed yet perfect in their own way.  It was difficult differentiate between “angel” and “devil” because each character had good and evil within them…just like all of us out here in the real world.

If you haven’t picked up Daughter of Smoke and Bone yet, do yourself a favor, and check it out soon.  It’s an amazing story that will definitely keep you on your toes.  It took me on a journey that was both unexpected and amazing, and I hope you’ll feel the same.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is the first book in a trilogy.  Book two, Days of Blood and Starlight, is set to be released on November 6th of this year.  In the meantime, you can get more information on author Laini Taylor and Daughter of Smoke and Bone at http://www.lainitaylor.com/ and http://daughterofsmokeandbone.com/.  Enjoy!

Wildefire

I love mythology.  Always have, always will.  My latest read, Wildefire by Karsten Knight (no relation), relies heavily on mythology for its story, but it’s not your typical retelling of a mythological tale.  Unlike so many books that deal with well-known myths, Wildefire brings together deities from several different cultural belief systems.  The gods and goddesses in this story come from Greek, Norse, Egyptian, Zulu, Shinto, Polynesian, and even Native American myths.  That in itself is pretty cool to me.  It’s also cool how this unique story unfolds…

Ashline Wilde does not have an easy life as the only Polynesian girl in her school in New York, and things are about to get much worse. When Ash finds out that her boyfriend cheated on her, she lets the girl he cheated with know just how upset she is. Things go from bad to worse when Ashline’s estranged sister Eve enters the fray. What could have blown over in a few days escalates into a horrific, unexplainable incident that will send Ash across the country to escape the fallout.

Months later, Ash is a student at Blackwood Academy in California.  She’s the school’s star tennis player, she has good friends, she’s caught the eye of a really hot park ranger, and she’s finally beginning to leave the past behind her…or at least she thinks so.

It seems that Ash did not end up at Blackwood by accident.  She and several other students were called there by–what else?–a siren.  Ash and the others soon learn that they are not mere high school students.  They are reincarnations of gods and goddesses, and each of them has a purpose to fulfill.  But who (or what) has determined what that purpose should be?

Ash is not sure what is going on or if she even wants to be a part of it, but she is sure of one thing–her life will never be the same.  (Oh, how right she is.)  And when big sister Eve–who is also more than human–reappears to wreak havoc in Ash’s life, Ash must rely on all of her resources–both human and divine–to preserve the life she’s built for herself.  Can she win a fight with her powerful and determined sister?  What does Eve even want with Ash?  Can Ash solve the mystery clouding her future before the world as she knows it is set aflame?  Read Wildefire by Karsten Knight to discover how Ash deals with a war of mythological proportions.

If you’re looking for a book that is different from nearly everything out there, I encourage you to give Wildefire a try.  Even the chapter setup is unique.  Mysteries abound in this story, some of which remain unsolved at the end.  And the ending is so unexpected that I think readers will be clamoring to know where the story is headed.  Luckily, questions will be answered in two more books.  Book two, Embers and Echoes, will be released sometime this year, and book three, Afterglow, will be out in 2013.

Caution:  Wildefire contains some adult language and situations, so I would recommend it for readers age 14 and up.

If you’d like more information on Karsten Knight and the Wildefire series, visit http://www.karstenknight.com/.  You can also follow Karsten on Twitter @KarstenKnight.  Peace out.

The Name of the Star

It’s so great when I come across a book that grabs me from the first page.  My latest read, The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson, is one of these books.  I loved the voice of the main character, Rory, and I was entranced by the London setting.  This book has also provided me with one of my new favorite quotes that adequately sums up what it’s like to converse with a Southerner.

“I come from people who know how to draw things out.  Annoy a Southerner, and we will drain away the moments of your life with our slow, detailed replies until you are nothing but a husk of your former self and that much closer to death.”

It’s almost like the author had a camera or microphone planted in every gathering I’ve ever been to in my small, Southern town.  I laughed out loud when I read this–all the while picturing several of my family members (who I’ll be seeing in just a few days) who have that special Southern ability to drain the life out of anyone they happen to rope into conversation.  (This may explain why I always bring a book to family gatherings.  It may be rude and antisocial, but even pretending to be engrossed in a book provides me with a much-needed escape.)  (See what I just did there?  I provided you with way too much information and drew things out and probably drove some of you away with this unnecessarily detailed paragraph about holiday gatherings with my family.  Welcome to the South.)

Anyhoo, The Name of the Star is a thoroughly entertaining–and kind of creepy–read that plays upon fear.  It seems that someone is recreating the crimes of Jack the Ripper, and our heroine Rory might be the only one capable of stopping the mysterious murderer…

While her parents are spending a sabbatical year at a university in England, Rory Deveaux, a teenage girl from Louisiana, has decided to spend her senior year of high school at a boarding school in London. She’s never been to boarding school–much less London–and it’s a bit of an adjustment for her. Things are a lot more intense than in America, and they’re about to get even worse. See, her school is in the East End of London, and someone in the area is recreating the murders perpetrated by Jack the Ripper in 1888. The entire area is in a panic, especially because there are no clues as to who might be committing these heinous acts. The cops have no evidence. Security cameras captured the murders, but not the murderer. Everyone is at a loss…until Rory sees someone on the night of one of the murders. Someone no one else saw.

Could the weird guy she saw outside of her dorm be the new Ripper?  Why didn’t her roommate Jazza see him?  Could this have any connection to the security cameras not being able to see the Ripper?  As Rory tries to uncover a mystery without losing her mind, she encounters some disturbing truths along with a strange new ability.  Why can she see people no one else can see?  Does anyone around her share this ability?  And can she use it to find out who the Ripper is and stop him before she’s his next victim?  Enter the shady world of London to reveal the truth in The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson.

If you want a funny yet creepy read that will leave you wanting more–but still kind of scared to turn the next page–then The Name of the Star is the book for you.  I read it during two extremely gloomy days here in South Carolina.  The weather outside matched the setting and tone of this book perfectly, and I refused to answer unexpected knocks at the door while I was reading.  I will admit that I was terrified that someone was at the door to kill me.  (I tend to get a little involved in books I read, and I am aware that a potential murderer would probably not knock.  I found out a little while ago that it was my grandmother who was at my door.  Oops.)

If you’re interested in The Name of the Star or any other books by Maureen Johnson, you should visit her website at http://www.maureenjohnsonbooks.com/index1.html.  I’ll go ahead and let you know that The Name of the Star is the first book in The Shades of London series.  The second book, The Madness Underneath, is expected to be released in October 2012.  Based on how the first book ended, we can look forward to even more mysteries to solve in the second.

Haven

Last week, I finished a book that was sort of a hybrid of X-Men and The Hunger Games (Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi).  Purely by chance, this week, I finished Haven by Kristi Cook, a book that’s a bit like X-Men meets Twilight.  (Maybe the universe is telling me that I need to have an X-Men movie marathon this weekend.  I’m okay with that.)  In any case, one of these books was new and different.  The other…well, the other was extremely predictable and easy to put down.  If you’ve read my review for Shatter Me, you can probably guess which of these two books was my favorite.

In Haven, readers are introduced to Violet, a teen girl with strange abilities.  She’s always been an outcast, but she has a good feeling about her new boarding school, Winterhaven.  She’s drawn to the place, and she soon learns the reason why.  Winterhaven is a school for others like her, students with special “gifts,” psychic and supernatural abilities that mark them as different from those outside the school.  Inside the school grounds, they are safe and can learn to hone and control their talents.  Violet can finally share her ability–disturbing visions of the future–with others, but she doesn’t see how she can control these visions…or stop them from coming true.

As Violet adjusts to life at Winterhaven, she encounters the most intriguing guy she’s ever met.  (Of course she does).  There’s something about Aidan Gray that draws Violet in, and it appears he feels the same way about her.  But his emotions seem to run hot and cold.  One minute, he’s completely crazy about her.  The next minute, he’s doing his best to push her away.  How does he really feel about her, and why is he so determined that Violet keep her distance?

Violet isn’t sure what’s going on, but she is certain of one thing:  Aidan is playing a starring role in her visions, and the future doesn’t look good.  Why is Aidan covered in blood?  Who is threatening her friends?  Why does she see herself killing the boy she’s come to love?  What do these visions mean, and can Violet find a way to stop them before it’s too late?  Read Haven by Kristi Cook to find out.

I must admit that Haven was not a top read for me.  It was simply too much like Twilight for my tastes (even though Violet was a bit less needy than Bella Swan).  There was always this push-pull between Violet and Aidan that, in many ways, mirrored the Bella-Edward relationship.  Can he suppress the urge to bite her?  (Oops.  Kind of gave it away that Aidan’s a vampire.  My bad.)  Will the kissing go too far?  It’s been done.  I did like Aidan’s interests in science and possibly finding a cure for his “disease,” but, all in all, the story was very predictable, and the resolution was a bit anticlimactic. 

If you’re set on reading about boarding schools for teens with special abilities–and X-Men is not your thing–I would go with Rachel Hawkins’ Hex Hall books (Hex Hall and DemonGlass) over this one.  If, however, you decide that Haven is the book for you, be prepared for a sequel as well.  The second book, Mirage, is set for a summer 2012 release.  For more information, go to http://kristi-cook.com/.

Dead Beautiful

I had such high hopes for this book when I began reading it.  Dead Beautiful is about a young girl whose parents die mysteriously.  The girl is sent to a creepy boarding school on the other side of the country where she meets the most gorgeous guy in the world.  Of course, he has some pretty freaky secrets, and she has to figure them out.  Yes, I know this sounds familiar, but I was hoping for a different twist in this formulaic story.  I did get a twist, but it was not what I was expecting (or even hoping to see), and some scenes, descriptions, and characters in this book were kind of obviously ripped off from other similar works.  Now, I’m not saying this book was all bad, but it wasn’t all good either.  But what do I know.  Read Dead Beautiful and judge for yourself.

What do you do if you find your parents dead in the woods, and there’s no rational explanation for why they were there or how they died?  Well, if you’re Renee Winters, you’re sent to live with your super-rich grandfather who, in turn, sends you to a weird boarding school on the other side of the country.  In essence, Renee has lost everything–her parents, her home, her friends, her sense of familiarity with her surroundings–and she’s been plopped into a scary new environment where everything is not always as it appears.

At the prestigious Gottfried Academy, Renee is unprepared for the courses she’s now taking.  At her old school in California, she took the basics–math, English, science, history, and maybe a foreign language.  At Gottfried, however, Renee finds herself enrolled in classes like horticulture, crude sciences, elementary Latin, and others that seem to have no merit in the world outside of her new school…or so it seems.

As Renee is dealing with this new school, living with a roommate, facing life without her parents, and leaving her old life behind, she also comes face-to-face with the most beautiful boy she has ever seen.  His name is Dante Berlin.  He’s absolutely perfect.  Well, almost.  Okay, so his skin is really cold, he never sleeps or eats, he heals remarkably fast, and he’s the only student allowed to live off-campus.  (Does this guy sound familiar to anyone?  Does he perhaps remind you of a sparkly vampire maybe?  Hmmm?)  Renee isn’t really bothered by any of this, but she does wonder why Dante will never kiss her on the lips.

Renee is wondering about some other things, too.  Like, what is the strange Gottfried Curse that no one seems to want to talk about.  What happened to the two students who left school last year?  And why does Renee think their disappearances and other strange happenings at Gottfried are somehow connected to her parents’ deaths?  What would lead her to this conclusion?  And could she be right?  Figure it out for yourself when you read Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon.

I’m not a huge fan of this book for many reasons, the least of which is the lack of clear resolution at the end of the book.  I also felt that some things were basically stolen from the Twilight saga, and I really didn’t like the twist in the relationship between Renee and Dante.  Also–and I know this is giving something away, but here goes–I really hate zombies.  Any creature that even remotely resembles a zombie, really.  Totally ruined things for me.  Honestly, I doubt I would have even picked up this book if I had known what I was in for, but I did, and I’ll have to live with the nightmares.  (Did I mention that I hate zombies?)

Anyway, if you decide to give Dead Beautiful a try, please let me know what you think.  Did you catch the similarities to other books?  Were you as disappointed as I was that the author couldn’t be just a little more original?

Anna and the French Kiss

After reading Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins, I now want to move to Paris.  Before reading this book, I never even wanted to visit France, and now I want to live there.  Maybe it’s just the phenomenal writing of Ms. Perkins, but she makes living in Paris seem like the greatest thing in the world, and I find that my boring, humble life in small-town America just can’t compete.  I wonder if there’s a librarian-exchange program I can look into…something to think about.

Anna and the French Kiss is an absolutely wonderful book, and I’m so glad that other bloggers led me to it.  It’s honestly not something I would have picked up on my own, so thanks to those who gave it such rave reviews and got me interested (particularly Kiersten White, author of Paranormalcy and blogger at http://kierstenwrites.blogspot.com/).  I was hooked from the first page, and only my need for sleep made me stop reading last night.  Anna and the French Kiss had a beautiful setting, relatable characters, witty dialogue, and hot guys with even hotter accents.  What more could a girl want?

Anna is a senior this year.  She’s been looking forward to her last hurrah in her Atlanta high school, but her dad, a famous (and somewhat pretentious) novelist, has other ideas.  He’s decided that she should spend her last year of high school at a boarding school in Paris.  Now, this might make most girls giddy, but Anna?  Not so much.  She wasn’t even given a choice in the matter, and now she has to leave everything she’s known to live in a country where she’ll struggle just to communicate.

Well, things may not be as bad as Anna had feared.  Of course, most of the people around her speak English.  (She is going to a school for rich American kids, after all.)  Almost immediately, she makes friends with Meredith, her next door neighbor and soccer player; Josh and Rashmi, a couple that fights almost as much as they make out; and Etienne St. Clair, probably the hottest guy she’s ever seen in her life.  (It doesn’t hurt that he has a charming British accent.)  Sparks fly between Anna and Etienne from the start.  There’s just one problem.  He’s got a girlfriend–a very serious girlfriend.  Anna can’t help the way she feels about Etienne, but she knows there’s no hope for a relationship beyond simply being friends (especially since Meredith has a crush on Etienne, too).

Soon, though, it becomes clear that things are not all sunshine and roses for Etienne and his girlfriend.  And Etienne is spending a lot of time with Anna.  Long looks.  Glancing touches.  Intense conversations.  Would he be doing these things if he wasn’t at least a little interested?  But what about the girlfriend?  Could Etienne ever leave her and really be with Anna?  Time after time, Anna thinks it could happen, but circumstances–the illness of Etienne’s mother, Anna’s own boy troubles at home and school, comments from friends and enemies alike–always seem to get in the way.  How can Anna land the guy of her dreams in the most romantic city in the world?  Well, you’ll just have to read Anna and French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins to find out!

I cannot say enough that I adored this book.  It is awesome, and you should read it.  I’m looking forward to the next book by Stephanie Perkins, Lola and the Boy Next Door, which is scheduled for release in September of this year.  You should definitely pop over to the author’s website, http://www.stephanieperkins.com/, for more information.  Her writing on the website is just as witty as the writing in her books (and that is saying something).

The Candidates

I don’t know why I like books about high schools so much, especially high schools where the students have magical abilities.  I hated high school when I was in it, and I always felt like I didn’t fit in.  Maybe I just like the idea of going to a school where you can be yourself, don’t have to hide who you truly are, and can still fit in…kind of like Xavier’s school in X-Men.  The school in my latest read, The Candidates, is kind of like Xavier’s school, but it’s a little more complicated.  At Delcroix Academy, some kids are your average, run-of-the-mill geniuses, but others, like Dancia Lewis, have special “gifts,” powers that they neither understand nor know how to harness.  And how can Delcroix Academy help them with this?  Well, the answer may be a little complicated…

Dancia Lewis first became aware of her power when someone she cared about was threatened.  Bad things happen when the people she loves are in danger, and Dancia is scared of what she is really capable of.  Her solution?  Don’t get close to anyone.  And it works for a while…until she is invited to attend the mysterious Delcroix Academy.  Delcroix is not your typical high school.  Everyone knows you must be invited to attend, and that usually only happens to geniuses or ridiculously wealthy people.  Dancia is poor.  Why would they want her at Delcroix?  Could they know her secret?  Could they possibly know about the powers she’s never told anyone about?

When Dancia enters the gates of Delcroix, her life immediately changes.  She’s got friends for the first time in years, she’s caught the eye of the most popular guy in school, Cam, and she’s growing closer to the resident bad boy, Jack.  Dancia is still afraid to use her powers and tries her best to avoid them, but that may not be possible, especially when she learns that Jack has his own powers that are just as dangerous as hers.

Dancia is confused, and she doesn’t know what to do.  It doesn’t help that she has feelings for both Cam and Jack.  Cam is seemingly the perfect guy, and she doesn’t understand why in the world he would be interested in her.  Jack is mysterious, misunderstood, and emotionally broken, and part of Dancia wants to be the one to save him from himself.  How can she reconcile her feelings for these two totally different guys?

When the truth about Delcroix Academy becomes clear to Dancia, her life becomes even more complicated.  What will she do with what she’s discovered?  Who can she trust?  Why is everyone so convinced that Jack is a danger to her and beyond saving?  Is Delcroix really all about helping her understand her powers, or is something more sinister going on?  Read The Candidates, book one in the Delcroix Academy series by Inara Scott, to discover the answers to these questions and many more.  Just like Dancia, you’ll be surprised at what you find.

I truly enjoyed stepping into the world of Delcroix Academy.  The Candidates was a great first book in what promises to be a captivating new series.  The characters are flawed, but readers will root for them to overcome their many obstacles.  I look forward to reading the next book, The Watchers, which should be out sometime this year.  For more information on Inara Scott and her books, please visit http://www.inarascott.com/.  Enjoy!

Infinite Days

My latest read, Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel, has been on my “to-read” list for quite some time.  This past week, I finally got around to reading this one, and I’m so glad I did.  I’ll go ahead and tell you that this is a vampire novel, but I think author Rebecca Maizel has kind of taken the sexy out of being a vampire in this novel (in a good way).  This is not your typical young adult vampire novel.  Being one of the undead is not something to strive for in this book.  It comes with a life of unending pain and torment, and most vampires just want to be human again.  And one of them is going to get that chance…

Lenah Beaudonte was once one of the most ruthless vampires in all the world.  She killed without thought or remorse.  In fact, killing was the only thing that brought her any relief from the pain and torment felt by all of her kind.  She wanted to feel something–anything–more than the evil constantly engulfing her.  And the one who made her, Rhode, is about to give her that chance.  Through an ancient ritual rooted in a loving sacrifice, Rhode gave Lenah the gift of humanity.  Yes, he made her human once more at the expense of his own life.

Now, Lenah is human and experiencing a new life as a sixteen-year-old girl.  (As you can imagine, she’s actually quite a bit older than that.)  She must learn what it means to be a teenager in the modern world.  Before his death, Rhode made sure that she would be able to do this.  He enrolled her at a prestigious boarding school and saw that her every need would be met.  So, Lenah is learning, for the first time in centuries, what it means to be a “normal” person.  She’s making friends, attending school, having fun, and even falling in love.

But time, especially when you’ve seen and done so much, has a way of catching up to a person.  You see, Lenah’s coven, a group of super-strong vampires she selected herself, is looking for her.  They’re not quite as willing as Rhode to allow her to be human.  They want their merciless queen back, and they’ll do whatever they must to make that happen, including destroying those that Lenah has come to care for in her human life.  What will she do?  Can she give up those she has grown to love?  Can she relinquish her humanity for the second time in her existence?  Is she willing to follow Rhode’s example and sacrifice herself to save the people she loves?  Find out these answers and more when you read Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel.

If you know anything about me, you probably already know that I enjoyed this book.  It’s not just the vampire thing that I liked, though that was definitely a plus.  I really enjoyed the glimpses we got into Lenah’s life as a vampire and how that contrasted with her new life as a human.  As a vampire, she was truly evil and horrifying.  Contrasting that with the mind of a teenage girl was, let’s just say, interesting.  I was definitely invested in what happened with Lenah and how she hoped to redeem herself in the end.

There is a sequel to Infinite Days.  It’s called Stolen Nights.  There’s no word yet on when it will be out, but you can be sure that I’ll buy a copy whenever I can.  If you’d like more information, on Infinite Days or author Rebecca Maizel, visit http://www.vampirequeennovels.com/.

The Mockingbirds

I picked up my latest read simply because I heard rave reviews about it.  It’s not my standard fare.  There are no aliens, vampires, werewolves, mermaids, or other (allegedly) mythical creatures involved.  This book is realistic fiction, and deals with a subject that many people are skittish about bringing up–date rape.  The Mockingbirds is a powerful book that demonstrates how much power students can have when they truly decide to stand up for themselves.  I think any female, and even male, readers will learn something from this book, especially that the lack of a “no” does not equal a “yes.”

Alex Patrick can’t remember what happened.  She knows she was at a concert and she had too much to drink.  She remembers flirting with a guy, Carter, but that’s where things go fuzzy.  How did she end up in Carter’s room?  What happened last night?  And why is he acting like they had the time of their lives?  Alex isn’t sure what’s going on, but she knows that something has gone terribly wrong.

When Alex tells her roommate and sister about the events of the previous evening, they bring up the worst four-letter word Alex can imagine–rape.  But she’s not sure.  If she doesn’t remember saying no, is it really rape?  Alex doesn’t want to face what happened to her, but after Carter begins telling anyone who will listen about what supposedly happened that night, Alex decides, with the help of a few friends, to take her case to the Mockingbirds, a secret society of students who act as the law at the prestigious Themis Academy.

Themis Academy is known for producing Ivy League students.  So, of course, the students at Themis are above all of the typical teenage pranks, cruelty, and drama.  Most of the teachers and administration at Themis are convinced that their students are above reproach and could never do anything truly horrible.  The only thing that gets a student kicked out of this school is failing a class.  Well, the students know what really goes on.  They know people are bullied, attacked, treated unfairly, and even driven to suicide by other students.  That’s why they have the Mockingbirds.  If the adults won’t right the wrongs at this school, the students will.

As Alex and the Mockingbirds proceed with their case against Carter, Alex learns more about why the Mockingbirds exist, how the organization was created, and how they really enforce the “law” at Themis.  Throughout this process, Alex begins to return to a somewhat normal life:  She has a sort-of boyfriend, she is preparing for a huge piano recital, and she’s moving on.

But sometimes it seems as if she’s drowning in what happened to her.  She’s remembering more and more and beginning to doubt her decision to go to the Mockingbirds.  How can she ever be sure about what happened that night?  What will happen at the trial against Carter?  Will she always be known as that girl who was raped?  Find out the truth when you read The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney.

As I said before, this is a very powerful book, and it’s even more powerful when you learn that the author is writing from personal experience.  (Read the author’s note at the end for more information.)  The connections to To Kill a Mockingbird don’t hurt either.  While I was a bit disturbed at how most of the adults were portrayed in this book, I can honestly admit that it’s probably not too far off the mark.  From my own experiences in high school, I can say that most of the teachers have no idea what’s going on.  Even if they do, there’s not much, if anything, they can do about it.  I wish there had been an organization similar to the Mockingbirds when I was in school.  Maybe I wouldn’t have been the target of bullies so much.

I really encourage young adults, especially girls, to read The Mockingbirds.  It’s a great story, and resources on date rape are provided at the end of the book.  I would caution younger readers that this book does contain mature content, so this book may not be appropriate for middle school readers.

For more information on The Mockingbirds or author Daisy Whitney, visit http://daisywhitney.com/blog/, where I just learned that there will soon be a second Mockingbirds book.  Can’t wait!